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Monday, September 14, 2009

Is It Any Cheaper to Eat Healthy?

I'm teaching a class during the Sunday School hour using Bill Hybels' small group study book, Getting a Grip. So far we've discussed getting a grip on life, our schedules, and our bodies. During yesterday's session, we got into a spirited discussion on whether you can eat healthy on a budget.

One couple contends that it's very difficult to buy healthy food when money's tight. My argument was that even when money is tight, it's more cost efficient to buy foods good for you because you are satiated by it. Why buy a bag of potato chips when you can buy a 10-lb. bag of potatoes for about the same cost?

I did make one concession in the argument. It takes more time to prepare the fresh foods. And of course, more effort. We can dive into a bag of chips in no time flat, but it takes more work to prepare the fresh potatoes.

2 comments:

You brought up a good point about eating healthy on a budget. I think it's possible, it just takes more effort to prepare healthy food but where we put in the work we'll save on the costs. Thanks for sharing this post!

It does, but you can bulk prepare ground meat, baked or grilled chicken, etc. and freeze the meats in meal-sized portions so all you have to do is grab from the freezer. Same goes for fresh veggies, fruits, etc. Spend your time on the front end and mass prepare when possible. Then on the back end, grab what you need, add seasonings, veggies, etc. and your meal is about 30 - 45 min. away from serving. Bulk rice stores in freezer, as does flour, if you find bargains on larger quantities than you need. If freezer space is at a premium, store rice, flour (grains) tightly sealed as possible in plastic or glass & a bay leaf. Bay leaves are wonderful deterrents against bugs!